Runaround Bag

Welcome to the October 15, 2014, installment of Purse Palooza.  Like the previous purse enthusiasts, I'm very happy to be a part of this online purse extravaganza.  While I have made several of Sara's patterns - Aragon, Aeroplane, Arabesque - and love them, the one purse/bag that I have made again and again AND AGAIN is the RunAround by LazyGirl Designs.  This bag thrills girls of all ages, is simple to make, and very practical.  It finishes at 7" x 9".  This pictured bag?

Eileen's Bag

Reverse of Eileen's Bag

I made for my buddy Eileen.  She uses it to "runaround" and it becomes an insert for her bigger purses.  There's a zippered compartment on one side, and a pocket on the other - it's that simple.  Plus a strap that can be used for across-the-body or just knotted to be grabbed.  She's been using this now for over a year.

MATERIALS NEEDED:  Two fat quarters, a zipper, some interfacing like ShapeFlex, and some fusible fleece.    Plus this fabulous pattern.

Because I am a quilter, I always have tons of scraps in my studio.  When I sew these scraps and make new fabric, they turn into some lovely Runarounds.  (Note:  all pictures are in pairs so you can see the front and the back of these clever little purses.)

These purses can be playful and whimsical, like the ones I made for my great nieces.

 Or they can be formal, like these: 

So, you know I can make these RunAround bags.  But so can anyone else.  My neighbor Jo, a high school junior, came over and made this Runaround within two hours.  If you have zipper fear, this clever pattern will help you get over it.  Seriously, the zipper insertion is the simplest I have ever done.  Both Jo and her sister had no difficulty at all with this part of the process. 

Here are some pictures from that afternoon with Jo. 

Jo's fabric palette - she's a musician

Putting pieces on the floor, just to keep track of her project and mine.

Jo and my Husqvarna becoming friends - she had no sewing experience.

A few weeks later Jo returned with her little sister Kate (also a musician), an 8th grader.  And here are the results of that two-hour session:

Smiling at the end of our session!  and both girls are ready to return to the studio

One of the things I have learned from Sara through her SewSweetness blog and patterns is that the more pictures the better.  Here are more pictures of various RunArounds.  What a great pattern!

Batiks and Shot Cottons

Pieced fabric and a funky print 

Marcia Derse fabrics, zippers, and the pattern

And Voila - bags!

Treasured scraps become perfect Runarounds

Making them can become an addiction

This favorite scrap became a RunAround.

Study this last picture because it shows two bags in process.  The two left bags are the finished bags.   I made twins so you could see the components.  The top pictures are the back of the bag, including the pocket.  If you're very clever, you'll figure out a way to put a little pocket on the inside.  The bottom pictures are the zippered component.  This pattern shows you how to very clever layer these components, leaving the zippered part open.  Then you sew all the way around the four sides, making sure you've accounted for the straps, and turn the bag inside out through the zipper.

Good pattern directions.  Clever but easy construction.  Practical results which can be dressed up or down.  I estimate I have made 40 Runarounds so far.  And I don't think I am finished yet. 

Sky Full of Stars

 Young Baby Boy Lee is coming into this world soon - his due date is November 1.  And young baby boy Lee has artistic parents.  His dad Ivan is a graphic artist - his mom Jenny Seidelman is a playwright.  This young child has a beautiful nursery, which is a big consideration for a quilter.  Grandma Laurel went shopping with me for the fabrics and bought them.  Eight-pointed stars of varying sizes seemed to be a natural for these fabrics.  While I thought about sending this quilt out to be long-armed, I ultimately decided to put on my big-girl free motion quilting panties. 

From this detail you can see that I did quilt stars throughout the quilt.  QFF Wayne was surprised at how many bobbins I went through during the quilt - I was too.  However, I do like how this turned out. Grandma Laurel loved the Aurora Borealis fabric, and we decided to use it for the back of this quilt.  It's perfect. This baby quilt is meant to be dragged around and used.  Today was Jenny's shower - how much fun to see her in her 8-month glory.  Here's to a lifetime of love for young baby Lee and his parents and his grandparents! 

An Ellipitcal Drunkard's Path or Feathers

Pinterest - what a great source for inspiration.  ZenChic pinned this quilt from an Etsy store.  And I fell in love.  Hard.  And I began my research.  This quilt is by Helen Richards, an Australian quilter.  Her web page has pointers to her Etsy shop.  So I began to google rectangular Drunkard's path and elliptical Drunkard's path - with little success.  One source led to some out-of-stock templates for little 3" x 6" blocks.  Too small.  Finally I wrote to Helen through Etsy to ask her about her templates.  And this lovely generous woman sent me a PDF of the block.  This morning I walked to town, had what she sent enlarged onto card stock, and have already made a test block.

 Because this curve is so gentle, the block is easier than a standard Drunkard's Path block.  The finished block came out to 13" x 6.25".  Now I must figure out how much Helen's color choices have had on what I love about this quilt.  To borrow from Macbeth, I think I'll be bloody, bold, and resolute in the execution of the quilt - and be thankful for my design wall as well as Helen's spirit of generosity. 

Luckily I received Helen's PDF before I went any further with this feather block from Anna Maria Horner. I've beeen intrigued by this pattern and already had some made fabric from my scraps to test this template and pattern out on. This block with the red border finished out at 12" x 20" and will be yet another opportunity for my hand quilting. I won't give up on the feathers. But for now the Ellipical Drunkard's Path is the clear-cut winner for October!

Little pale zippers and scraps

My sister-in-law Kim is teaching her granddaughters, my great-nieces, to play jacks and requested little zip bags for these little pieces.  These bags are 3.5" by 4" and 4" x 4".  I'm afraid they might be too small - I haven't played with jacks in over - well, my math isn't that good but to say 55 years would not be inaccurate.  This is a perfect way to use those little pale zippers that seem to accumulate in my zipper stash.  While I'm working away on things that I either cannot post about yet or getting ready for the big Purse Palooza 2014 blog post (this link is for Purse Palooza 2013), I've been working my way through scraps - perhaps for a scrappy log cabin?   

Practice does make perfect Zippered Pouches

This past Labor Day Weekend was a food one - canning giardeniera and making cinnamon rolls. But I did manage to crank out 4 zippered pouches. Guildster Emily B turned me on to this great tutorial by Sew Minty for zippered pouches. And Emily L pointed out this tutorial for perfect zipper tabs by Erin at Dog Under My Desk. There's a wonderful spirit of generosity among quilters. Nice.

Special People

I have so many quality people in my life. One of them is Sue Ryan, the first treasurer of the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild. Her current employer is my former employer - The Chicago Public Schools. Sue is a kindergarten teacher who has a wonderful sense of whimsy and color and a love affair with fish. Here is her back-to-school present - a shark pencil case. And here's the link to the tutorial from Patchwork Posse. Notice my shark's top fin is backwards - chalk it up to dyslexia. Sue will understand.

Another person is my husband's sister Terry who is 79 this month. Here is an Arabesque bag for her - a free download from Sara Lawson of Sew Sweetness. Sara is hosting her Purse Palooza 2014 in October, and I'm excited about being a guest blogger for this event. I'll be blogging about the Runaround Bag on October 15. Sometimes I get so excited about something I've made that I forget to photo and document it. Last night we had John's cousin Marian for dinner. It was her 80th birthday. Using a pair of John's old jeans, I made her a shopping bag, which she loved. Three special people who deserve special gifts!

Simple Baby Quilt

Perils and Joys of Baby Quilts

Baby Quilts are fun for several reasons.  Their size is perfect, and I can easily do my own quilting.  And the whole design and color process allows me to be creative.  However, because of their size, I use straight pins for basting.  Each one of my baby quilts has several bits of blood - that's just the way I roll.  Since I wash the quilt after quilting, it doesn't affect the quilt - just my arms and legs.  As I have told my grandsons, quilting is a sport, complete with injuries.  On a rainy day like today, baby quilts tease thought - especially about the passage of time.  How can my oldest grandson be a sophomore in college?  How can my NYC niece be having her second baby (oh boy oh boy another baby quilt!!!)?  Working on baby quilts is joyful.  Two of my friends are about to be grandmothers.  One is expecting her 5th and 6th grandchildren in September.  One is becoming a first-time grandmother in October.  Their joy makes me relive those wonderful days when John's kids were having their babies.  It's a sweet time of life.  Working on baby quilts keeps life in perspective, especially after my dad's death and my mom's steady decline.  Might be time to watch Lion King and sing along with all those wonderful songs.

Quilty Sympathy

So many friends have sent such lovely cards and notes to me, each one very special. But these two are extraordinary. My cousin Barbara Long Bailey found this embroidery that was made into a card. And my quilty guild buddies made this hexie rug in my favorite colors. Not only did my quilt besties sign it, one of them (Holly? Sarah E?) free-motioned quilted "Donna, you are sew loved." Deep pieceful thanks.

A Pause in Life's Rhythm

July has been a difficult month. My father received at-home hospice services and died in my brother's Lombard house peacefully on July 13th, just three days after his 66th wedding anniversary. My brother and sister-in-law were with him - so was my mom. My minister brother did a wonderful memorial service on the 19th. Dad played to his final packed house that day. And we are all at peace. This blog started in 2007 with the death of my college roommate and dear friend Dodie.  And now this is another life's milestone.  And of course my sewing has been impacted.  My quilting adventures of late have been "by hand" since I have spent so little time in the studio. This block is a sample from the quilt pictured below.  I made 48 nine-patches by hand and sashed them with a wonderful fabric my guild buddy Mimi gave me.  The quilt assembly was completed just as my dad went into hospice (is anyone else thinking "The Last Leaf" by O Henry?).    Mimi does handwork and turned me on to quilter Renate Hiller and her philosophy on handwork.  So this quilt - 68" x 86" - will be quilted by hand. 

Even I know enough by now to do a bit a practice before starting anything.  And I am intrigued by the application of Japanese Sashiko to quilting.  So much so that I am taking a class about this topic in Austin next February at QuiltCon 2015.  So I made a 49th block, batted and backed it, and am experimenting with thread and embroidery needles.  I like the primitive look of my stitches.  The batting for the sample and big quilt is wool (which I love), so there will be a wonderful lofty and airy look to this quilt.  The white thread blends in the best, but I do love how the red and black thread look.  This sampler will allow me to figure out what is best for this big quilt.

People do goofy things under duress. One of my many in the past few weeks was to decide I needed to make clothes. Chicago fabric designer Sara Lawson put out a new line of quilting fabrics, two of which have been issued in a knit. I fell in love with this one and bought three yards. So I spent time with pattern books and bought several patterns, which you'll see strewn about in the pictures below.  So what did I think?  that I would whip up an outfit for my father's funeral? 

But I also did some sane things in the past month, like continuing to walk daily. My respect for my Lombard brother Doug and his wife Kim has increased, if that's possible. My brother Al made my father's funeral an absolute celebration, and of course my husband John has kept the house going so I can do what I do. The administrative wrapping up with take another couple of weeks, but it's all sort of under control. (One little coincidence: I turn 65 in October and am filing for Medicare benefits through John - CPS does not pay into SSA. So while I was at the offices last week, I was also able to report my father's death. Tomorrow I have to go back with additional documentation for both me and transfer my father's benefits to my mom. I am taking with me their original marriage license from July 10, 1948.) If I could just say the same about the studio...

My dad was a remarkable man, something I lost sight of in the past few years. His funeral celebrated the impact he had on so many. I look at my life - my education, my intellectual curiosity, my humor, my creativity - and know that he and Mom are at the source of this all. I am looking forward to reestablishing some sort of rhythm in my studio and continuing my quilting adventures, being so at peace.